100 Lifetimes
by Soshite
Summary: There are many different worlds out there, that branched out from one single place; each one special and unique. However, no matter where one would look, those two were always inextricably linked to one another. Joshua and Neku drabbles.
1. Life 1

**Title: **100 Lifetimes

**Author: **Soshite

**Summary: **There are many different worlds out there, that branched out from one single place; each one special and unique. However, no matter where one would look, those two were always inextricably linked to one another. Joshua and Neku drabbles.

**Rated: **T

**Disclaimer: **I do not own any part of the World Ends With You. If I did, you can bet your butt that there would have been more of Week 2!

**Author's Note:** Hello people! Welcome to 100 Lifetimes where I get the fun of doing 100 short ficlet or drabbles about Neku and Joshua in either reincarnations, past lives, alternate universes, etc! Sounds like fun, no? Some will be friendship, others shounen-ai...and maybe yaoi, if I feel like upping the rating, hahahaha. But for now...enjoy the ficlets!

**Life 1**

_Dare You To Move_

Here they were, standing face to face, each of them holding an oversized gun with a single bullet inside the barrels. They were enemies and friends – no, that was much too good a term to use on the likes of them. They had been _partners_, Neku thought, no matter how shallow a description that was. It had all been a Game to this person, this wretch of a human in front of him.

_Or maybe Joshua had never been human in the first place._

This was the endgame now; all of Shibuya depended on Neku's ability to lift the gun and shoot Joshua dead. All the orange-haired teenager had to do was pull the trigger and that would be that. Shibuya would be space dust, Neku could go back home with his friends and he didn't have to think about the Reaper's Game ever again. Never have to look over his shoulder to see if a Reaper was tailing, never have to worry about being in some twisted freak's mind games or never have to wonder what it was that made Joshua smirk at him the way he did now.

_Do it, Neku! You have to save Shibuya!_

Everyone was depending on him; the pressure was higher. Saving Shiki had taken everything out of the teen already and the subsequent week by Beat's side only made the boy want to break down and sob like a little kid again. The last three weeks had been literally_ Hell _and it was about time to emerge from the flames with gun on hand. This Game was going to be over any minute now. All he had to do was hold up the gun to Joshua's had and pull the trigger to win it all. Joshua smirked still, his arm having been raised a long time ago; he seemed at ease with the deadly weapon in his pale hand.

Neku secretly wished he was that confident. Where had the drive to do what he had to do to survive gone? Three weeks ago, he had no problem using his Psychs to almost erase Shiki from existence, when a Reaper had lied to him about letting him out of the Game, if he did. Although it hadn't sit well with him then, he raised up a hand, feeling the flow of telekinesis rush from the pin through him as his first partner was lifted into the air, by her throat.

That moment felt so long ago and so foreign. Had that really been Neku, then? Had that arrogant boy been _him_ up until now? He couldn't believe it.

The teen couldn't believe how much he had changed since then, either.

_Trust your partner._

There were no partners to help him now.

It was just Neku and Joshua and two guns, in the middle of the Room of Reckoning.

His heart skipped a beat.

He raised the gun and pressed on the trigger. He would make it quick, he decided. He had to remember, this was for all of Shibuya. He could do it.

Joshua chuckled and Neku faltered.

He couldn't do it, could he?

_I've changed too much._

That was his realization then and he knew that he had lost the Game. He had failed and Shibuya would take the brunt of his inability to defend the place he loved the most. Yes, he loved his Shibuya. It was loud, noisy, with the same old tall sky scrappers and busy streets filled to the brim with people jostling him all the time and annoying the hell out of him...but he still loved it all the same. It was also filled with people he cared for, like Shiki, Rhyme and Beat and with all the things he was passionate about – that he only realized too late that he had a passion for – music, the differentiating views of the fast paced town, the graffiti art of his most admired artist. If he could keep them safe, then he should, because Shibuya had become an integral part of his life! And had always been so and now it had more to offer him than just a stifling air and crowded streets.

But...

He couldn't shoot Joshua.

He could never shoot Joshua, because....

Joshua was everything Shibuya, wasn't he? He ruled over Shibuya and was, in essence, kind of like Shibuya's soul, right? He had the will and power to keep it all together without things coming apart at the seams; he kept the flow of Soul going and guided the city for what it was worth.

Joshua had also been his partner, who he had trusted, even if the bastard had been as suspicious as Hell. There were times when he wanted to strangle him, others where he was simply glad that the boy had chosen him to be his partner, above all else. Prissy as they came, he had been obnoxious, annoying and the most frustrating person he had ever met.

But he had been interesting and helpful and he still owed him for shielding Neku from getting hurt back during Pi Face's attack, even if it had been for an ulterior motive.

He still owed him one, didn't he? Yes, that was a good way of putting things. Much better than the feelings of sadness and pain the ripped through his entire being when he thought of that supposed last moment with the pale-haired Composer. Neku wouldn't have to think he felt sorry for allowing his partner to get hurt like that, for allowing his partner to get into such a dangerous situation because of him. Neku had already lost Shiki at that time; losing Joshua had been the proverbial straw on the camel's back.

Neku put the gun down, trying to keep himself from turning tail and running for his life. He had to stay and take responsibility. If all of Shibuya was going to fall anyways, he might as well take his due punishment like a man...even if he felt like a very small boy then.

_I'm scared._

_Trust your partner._

Maybe Joshua would understand why he was doing this, why he was giving up when there was so much on the line. Maybe, just maybe, the Composer would understand his sentiments right now and do the right thing when he was gone like so much Shibuya space dust.

Maybe, in some alternate universe, they could have been _real_ friends and not just partners.

_I won't forgive you, Joshua, for what you're about to do...but I trust you._

A tear fell and a shot rang loudly through the Room of Reckoning.


	2. Life 2

**Title: **100 Lifetimes

**Author: **Soshite

**Summary: **There are many different worlds out there, that branched out from one single place; each one special and unique. However, no matter where one would look, those two were always inextricably linked to one another. Joshua and Neku drabbles.

**Rated: **T

**Disclaimer: **I do not own any part of the World Ends With You. If I did, you can bet your butt that there would have been more of Week 2!

**Life 2**

_Last Kiss_

_Ring! Ring!_

"Huh?" Neku blinked, stopping in his tracks.

_Ring! Ring!_

Perplexed at first, he soon realized what was making that sound. It had been a while, since he had pretty much shut-off the volume on the thing since 'The Incident'.

"Oh, my cell..."

The orange top pulled out the little device from his pocket and flipped it open, not saying a word as he found out that someone had sent him a text message.

_Beep!_

"...A chain text?" Neku mused aloud, wondering who had sent it and what it was about. It read:

**Dear friend,**

**Did you know that if you hiccup 100 times, you die? It's true! Watch out!**

**A concerned friend**

The teen stared incredulously at the weird text in his phone for a good two seconds after he had finished reading it. He checked the message details and, strangely, found no sender or number attached to the text.

_Must be a private number_, he thought.

Without wasting another second, he deleted the useless message and continued heading over to Wildkat where his friends were waiting for him today and they were all going to hang out and it was going to be _great_. No point in worrying over a dumb urban legend like that, after all.

Neku had no idea that his day was going to shift from 'pleasant' to the realm of 'waking nightmare'.

When he arrived at the cafe known for being utterly devoid of people, even during the lunch hour rush, the teen saw that Shiki had already arrived and scored them the best seats in the house (which, admittedly, wasn't a particularly hard feat to accomplish at Wildkat). Beat and Rhyme had yet to make their appearance, but it would seem that someone had already taken up a seat next to Shiki at the counter...

And it wasn't Eri.

"Oh, why hello, Neku dear."

There was Joshua, sitting ever-so-nonchalantly at the counter, a mug of steaming hot bitterness in his slender, effeminate hands. That same old smirk was on his lips, but those violet eyes...they were the tip-off to some great trouble. Neku had learned over time that whenever the Composer's eyes looked at him that way, it meant that he should be running away in the opposite direction, as fast as his legs could take him. It was almost nostalgic, this feeling of horror mixed with irritation at the sight of Joshua.

_Just like old times_, Neku thought sardonically.

On a whim, Neku checked his back for a knife—or a 'kick me' sign. Never knew when Joshua was going to stab you or punk you somehow, after all.

"Joshua. What brings you here?" Neku asked, choosing the seat next to Shiki that wasn't taken.

Joshua gave a little shrug and sipped his coffee.

"Isn't it obvious?" the Composer drawled, much in a way a long suffering teenager spoke to his parents when they asked him if he had done his homework or not (and he usually hadn't, but the answer would always be 'yes', because god forbid a teenager ever told their parents the truth). "I'm having a coffee break."

"Composers can have coffee breaks?" inquired a familiar male voice, drawing the attention of the group of assembled teens. Hanekoma grinned in greeting to the kids as he came into the shop proper, having been re-arranging stock in the back. Or something like that. "Heya, Phones. So, what'll it be today?"

Neku scowled down two seats. "Got any pesticide?"

Hanekoma laughed. "Fresh out, I'm afraid."

Neku sulked. "Coffee, then. No milk or sugar; just black." Nodding, the barista of the WildKat went to brew up some of his special black magic. The girl on the boy's side giggled.

"Aaaw...are we in a bad mood today, Neku?" Shiki asked, smiling in amusement. The animosity still felt by her friend towards Shibuya's Composer was still apparent and very obvious. From space you could clearly see some things: The Great Wall of China, Stone Henge and Neku Sakuraba glaring daggers at Yoshiya Kiryuu. Although she thought it was a little mean, Shiki thought it was funny to see the two interact the way they did. Joshua, acting all calm and cool (and not just a little snotty, truth be told); Neku spitting and hissing like a cat being threatened.

_Ring! Ring!_

Shiki was startled at the sound of her own ringtone and quickly picked it up before it bothered anyone else. Not that the pale-haired teen on her left seemed at all fazed from the noise. Neku nearly fell out of his chair and actually started to hiccup as she opened up her cell to read a text message inside.

"Oh, Neku dear. Sounds like you've got the hiccups," Joshua stated smoothly, with a little smile on his lips. He rested an elbow on the countertop and cradled his chin in his hand, watching as the orange haired boy on the other side of Shiki hiccupped a few times. "Did you know that if you hiccup a hundred times, you die? Isn't that right, Shiki?" The dark haired girl nearly jumped out of her seat in surprise when the Composer's attention was suddenly fixed on her. So surprised, in fact, that she nearly dropped her phone onto the floor (and possibly breaking it), had Neku not been swift enough to catch it.

Laughing nervously, Shiki swiped her phone back from a blinking and still hiccupping Neku.

"Oh, y-yeah. Right," Shiki said. There was a pause where no one said anything and the girl got a little anxious, especially since it seemed that quite a few in the cafe were waiting for her to say something else. And so, she said only what could be said at the moment. "What?"

"That's—hic—it?" Neku asked.

"What else did you expect me to say?" Shiki posed back. All the orange top managed was a few more hiccups just as Hanekoma came back with his ordered cup o' joe, which, despite being very hot, Neku downed in record time, much to the horror of the seamstress-girl. "Neku!"

Slamming the cup down on the counter, Neku gasped for precious air as Joshua looked on and giggled. A glare was sent the Composer's way (and was nonchalantly brushed off), glad that he had stopped his sudden onset of hiccups. Growling, he said, "I'm okay. I think I just burned off my taste buds." He paused a moment. "Hiccups are gone, though."

"Well, that's too bad. Here I was, ready to come to your rescue," Joshua stated with a little chuckle.

"I don't need any help, especially from _you_ of all people," snarled Neku.

Before Joshua had a chance to make a snappy comeback (with an equally snarky return rally from Neku) Shiki cut in with a quick flail of her arms, bodily getting in between the two boys.

"O-oh! Um...Neku! Beat and Rhyme say they're not coming today."

"Huh?" said Neku.

Joshua took on a pensive look that had a hint of disappointment in it. "Oh? Well, that's too bad. I was hoping to be able to hang out with 'the gang'."

Neku snorted. "'The gang'? Seriously?' the boy asked, sounding quite incredulous. Boy, Joshua sure liked to use dated terminology. Then again, he had never been sure of the Composer's true age and he wasn't sure he wanted to know. Last thing the teenager wanted to think about was that he could possibly be hanging around the ultimate pedophile or something like that. Knowing Joshua like he did it just might be possible.

Especially when he started smiling the way he did now.

"Ah, well. Can't have everything, can we?" the pale teen said with a cheerful air. "It'll be just the three of us. My pretty Shiki –" Shiki blushed cutely at this, causing Neku to momentarily experience that faint warmth he always felt whenever she was happy (no matter the source of said happiness). "– and my adorable, Neku!"

The drawl in the way Joshua pronounced the orange-haired teen's name made said teenager's skin crawl. Joshua was up to no good again, he knew. There was trouble ahead and he could imagine all sorts of nasty things happening to him: getting shot, being forced to cross-dress, getting shot, eating weird herbs and roots, getting _shot_ and did Neku mention getting shot and –

_Hiccup!_

Oh, no way. His hiccups were back.

"Oh, my," Joshua began, a delicate hand close to his mouth as he feigned shock. "It would seem that your hiccups have returned."

"No – hic – _really _– hic – Captain Obvious?" Neku managed, in between jumps of his diaphragm. He glared balefully at the other boy who just shrugged nonchalantly, before smirking, as if Neku's little episodes were entirely his doing. Considering the nature of Shibuya and its Composer and Neku's own self-imposed paranoia that resulted from Joshua's past actions, the orange top had every right to suspect the oh-so-innocent looking pale boy. It was hard to be even remotely angry with him, though, because his hiccups kept distracting him from his slow burning rage.

"Neku, try holding your breath," Shiki suggested, face expressing concern for her friend.

"Count to ten while you do," Joshua added with a coy smirk.

The teen tried that, but it didn't really work and his hiccups were getting worse. It hadn't progressed to rapid fire succession yet, but now a hiccup would come in between every other word and it was frustrating. While Shiki (and eventually Hanekoma) tried to help the poor boy to stop his hiccups, the Composer seemed to be having a ball watching his favorite native Shibuyan suffer, while counting how many times he was hiccupping.

"…78…79…80…"

Shiki actually shot Joshua a glare. "Joshua, you _could_ do something other than count."

"Ah, but if I don't, we won't be able to keep track of how many times Neku here has hiccupped. Don't wanting him to croak again, now do we?" The pale boy as smiling from ear to ear, privately laughing up the situation as Neku realized what he meant and was panicking a bit more and that meant he was hiccupping faster. No way in Hell was he going to die young again!

Shiki was also panicking. "Mister Hanekoma, get a paper bag! Hurry!"

"On it! Just hang on, Phones!" The older man was off, though his pace was irritatingly slower than it should be. Obviously, _he_ didn't believe the myth of hiccupping to death. Then again, no one had really ever hiccupped long enough to actually know for sure.

"…89…90….91…"

"Oh, god!" Shiki cried, frantic. Neku was, too, but he couldn't even manage a word now. He whipped his head about wildly, wondering if there was anything he could use to stop his hiccups before they reached 100.

His eyes met Joshua's, who was still calmly counting down.

"..95…96…97…"

_Do something!_ Neku mentally begged the Composer. And Joshua…sneaky, smirking, mind reading, _evil_ Joshua...

…Grabbed the teen and pulled him in for a good, wet French kiss that surprised the hiccups right out of Neku. The orange-haired teen froze as he was giving the tongue-lashing of a lifetime as his first ever kiss and it was by one of the people he both called friend and enemy. It lasted a good minute before Joshua deigned to let go, walking away as he licked his lips, a spring in his step.

"Oh, would you look at that. No more hiccups," Joshua stated with a slight sing-song tone. "Sadly, I am needed in the Underground right now, so I'll take my leave. Ta-ta, Shiki...Neku."

With an infuriating giggle, the Composer left, leaving the two teens and the returning barista alone in the Wildkat.

Shiki was rubbing her friend's back comfortingly, face slightly pink from what she had just witnessed. She kept her eyes somewhat averted from Neku's horror-frozen face as Hanekoma happily announced that he had found the paper bag.

"Neku, you okay?" Shiki inquired, rather bashfully.

Neku blinked, coming out of his catatonic state to look down at the dark-haired seamstress, noticing the pinkness of her cheeks. Normally, this would have served to make Neku feel pleasantly happy and warm, but it only served as a reminder to what just happened seconds ago. He brought his hands up and slapped them onto his face.

"…Why do I trust him so much?" lamented Neku.

"On the bright side, Nkeu...your hiccups are gone!"

And so went another day in Shibuya.


	3. Life 3

**Title: **100 Lifetimes

**Author: **Soshite

**Summary: **There are many different worlds out there, that branched out from one single place; each one special and unique. However, no matter where one would look, those two were always inextricably linked to one another. Joshua and Neku drabbles.

**Rated: **T

**Disclaimer: **I do not own any part of the World Ends With You. If I did, you can bet your butt that there would have been more of Week 2! Also, the idea for this Life can be blamed on Zilleniose.

**Life 3**

_Innocent_

Yoshiya had never been too good with children, to be honest. And yet, his life's dream had been to teach and who would he teach, but children? Oh, he could have gone off to teach at a prestigious university such as Tokyo U, but all the students there would be completely uptight, stressed out and not have an ounce of imagination to them. Plus, fully grown adults jaded to the world weren't nearly as cute as, say, six year old children scuttling about his legs…

…Especially one little Neku Sakuraba, who looked like he was going to be swallowed up by his overly large sweater any minute now. His mother must have bought it several sizes too large in the hopes that he would eventually grow into it, thereby saving the house money they could spend on anything else, but the boy's wardrobe. At the very least, Neku would be warm this coming winter.

"Kiryuu-sensei!" Neku called, reaching up to tug on the sleeve on his blazer. The tiny thing barely reached his sleeve and his pulls were barely felt, however, Yoshiya had long grown accustomed to these calls for attention that he could tell that he was needed. "Kitaniji-sensei stole my important thingy!"

Yoshiya raised his brow at this. Kitaniji was one of the new teachers at the school who really did love teaching children, but was known for being a bit too heavy-handed with his methods and punishments. He understood his need for order in the school, but these were small children who needed to express themselves fully and without total restraint. As teachers, it was their job to guide these young minds towards a better future and to nurture them into strong, creative, independent…teens.

He did understand what Kitaniji was getting at, because without a little structure these little tykes could make all kinds of chaos (usually the noisy kind that had even the most stalwart professor cry out in agony), but there was no rule about having toys in school – and the First grade teacher could only assume the 'important thing' was a toy – and as long as Neku hadn't been playing with it during his class – which was impossible, because Kitaniji taught the Third graders – the man shouldn't have confiscated the boy's personal affects.

Well, this was going to get ugly. Or, at the very least, a little irritating, but Yoshiya had ways with people and he was pretty sure he could convince Kitaniji into giving him Neku's precious item. It would be underhanded, but it would make sure that the other teacher would never mess with one of his students ever again. Once Neku was in the Third grade, then Kitaniji could terrorize the boy all he wanted, but since little Neku was in _his_ class, the sunglasses wearing snob had _no right_ to even _gaze_ upon his students with anything resembling contempt.

Yes, Yoshiya was a tad possessive (and protective) of his kids, but he always played by the rule of people keeping their noses out of his part of Tokyo and he would keep out of theirs. His classroom was his world to rule, small as it was, but it was _his_.

With a gentle smile for the orange-haired boy, he patted his head with a promise that he would return Neku's precious item.

And so, that night, he and Kitaniji played a Game. It was nothing really illegal, but not exactly condoned in good society. Little did many of the faculty know that he and Kitaniji were of a kind who enjoyed street racing, but they did and Yoshiya, smugly, challenged the older man into one race.

If Yoshiya won, Kitaniji would return to him Neku's precious item.

If Kitaniji won, well, he would stop clashing with him on the subject of the students and give him free reign to do as he pleased, since Yoshiya was the only one with enough balls to argue with him on the subject (and win).

Dressed in flashy white biker's suit, the seemingly innocent looking teacher was soon leaving Kitaniji in his dust as he zoomed down their chosen course in record time. Little did the man know that there wasn't any turn, street or road that Yoshiya didn't know in Shibuya; he could have driven through the whole city with his eyes closed and he'd never hit a single thing. It might have been cheating just a tad, but it wasn't his fault Kitaniji didn't memorize every nook and cranny of Shibuya like Yoshiya had.

And so the precious item was given to him, all wrapped up in a paper bag. Kitaniji had explained that Neku had been showing it off to his friends the other day rather vehemently, saying that it was special and that no one else could have it. Thinking the boy to be acting rather selfishly, the Third grade teacher had taken the bag without so much as looking at its contents. It was still secured with tape and Yoshiya wondered what it was. It would have been nice to know exactly what he had risked his career for, after all.

Taking a peek, all he could see was white yarn. What the yarn formed exactly, Yoshiya didn't know, but he chalked it up to another crazy and fun night and went to bed, telling himself that Neku's pleased expression the next day when he presented to him, his lost treasure.

And pleased was the small child after school when Yoshiya held out the package. Surprisingly, Neku pushed it back into his hands, a cute little blush on his cheeks.

"Eh? Neku-kun, don't you want it back?" Yoshiya inquired. The boy shook his head vehemently, confusing the teacher more.

"No, it's…it's a present…I made it just for you!" Neku confessed.

A present…for him? Looking at the now bashful boy for a cue, he got a nod. Carefully, Yoshiya opened the paper bag and pulled out a very long white scarf. It wasn't made from the best quality yarn and there were little knots and holes here and there where the knitter had failed, but he could tell a lot of love and effort had gone into its creation.

And it was just for him. If he were the type to truly get sentimental, Yoshiya would have cried. Instead, he laughed at the irony of it all, that he had to fight for his own gift.

But it was truly appreciated, this innocent gift from a little boy who had no restraints when it came to people he cared about.

Ah, now he remembered why he wanted to teach children in an elementary school and not teens or adults in high school or university. They were grown-up and able to fend for themselves, but these small, delightful, innocent beings were still so young and fresh and innocent…and he wanted to protect that, for as long as he could. Until it was time for them to grow up. Children did not get to be children for long, after all and it would be unfair if they had to be forced into growing because of the mistakes of overbearing adults.

"Something wrong, Kiryuu-sensei?" the boy asked, blue eyes wide as he looked up.

Yoshiya shook his head and then gave the boy's orange spikes a good messing; the boy's laughter filled the room.

"No," the teacher responded softly, wrapping the scarf around his neck, "all is right in the world."

Neku beamed up at him and Yoshiya felt like he could take on the world. Patting Neku's head again, this time more gently, the teacher gave his gratitude.

"Thank you. I'll treasure this, Neku."


	4. Life 4

**Title: **100 Lifetimes

**Author: **Soshite

**Summary: **There are many different worlds out there, that branched out from one single place; each one special and unique. However, no matter where one would look, those two were always inextricably linked to one another. Joshua and Neku drabbles.

**Rated: **T

**Disclaimer: **I do not own any part of the World Ends With You. If I did, you can bet your butt that there would have been more of Week 2!

**Life 4**

_Die For You_

The first thing he realized upon waking that he was lying on something hard and very much unforgiving.

The second thing he realized was that his entire body ached like it hadn't ached in a very long time.

The third thing he realized was that his heart was beating. And Joshua knew for a fact that that hadn't made a beat in a long, long, _long_ time.

The pale-haired teen pushed himself up into a sitting position, finding that he was surrounded by people who ignored him – one lone, strange boy sitting on the ground – as they went about their business. The cacophony of their voices overlapping each other, trying to be heard above the others that also worked hard to be listened to. However, this kind of noise seemed so quiet and still, compared to the real noise that inhabited Shibuya.

Joshua realized, with great irony, that he had woken up in the Scramble.

How did he get there again? The Composer had to think about it for a bit, since his mind was less clear than it used to be and fuzzy memories came to the forefront, telling him exactly what had happened before his great awakening.

Oh, look. He even left a small crater. He was sure that would be _so_ easily explained.

But then it clicked.

He had been punished by the grand council of angels for his poor conduct as a Composer; for endangering humanity with his selfishness, for murdering an innocent child and then _reviving_ him when he had _clearly_ Lost the Game and then continuing to shirk his duties and neglecting the UG, which further endangered humanity…the list of charges had gone on and on and even included a few ridiculous ones like 'having poor fashion sense' and being bat shit crazy. The thing was, he recalled, he had stood up there proudly amongst those stuck-up angels and said he'd do it all again.

At that point, he had nothing to fear and had even anticipated his oncoming punishment.

He Fell. Stripped of his wings and status, he was flung back to the RG, much in the way Lucifer had, or so the legend went.

Lucifer never truly became human upon his fall, after all.

_I'm not the Composer anymore._

He was human; alive and weak and alone. And _dying_.

_It's all part of being alive. Living your life and then you die._

Somehow, the prospect of a permanent death didn't scare him. It didn't the first time he died (and he had been the one to pull the trigger) and it never would. He had seen what waited on the other side and could not wait to start anew and do things from the top once more. After all, this time round, he had someone trustworthy beside him; someone worth his time, God of Death or not. He was the only reason Joshua would give up his godhood and subject himself to the daily, boring humdrum of life once more and before facing death again.

"Neku…"

Joshua had made a roundabout plan that would get him exactly what he wanted. It had been hard on him and a strain on Shibuya, but he knew the city would still survive – would flourish – without him; it was strong and made all the more so once Neku Sakuraba unlocked his full potential. The ex-Composer wouldn't say that Shibuya became a better place like in all those cheesy, feel good stories you'd see in the theatres, but it was much, much brighter. Even with his now human eyes, he could see it…could feel it…

"Neku…"

What time was it? What was the date? Was it Saturday? And why did his body have to ache so much? God in heaven, he was still smarting. Today had to be the day though. Had to be at least a year after the last Game Neku had ever been allowed to play. They would be there. Neku would be there. Joshua had kept him waiting long enough.

Unlike his usual, laid back style, Joshua took off at a run for Hachiko. Forgetting that he was corporeal and not in the UG, he bumped into several people, but paid their angry shouts no mind. He had to get to Hachiko as quickly as possible. His punishment would not end at just Falling. The other angels would be given free reign to give him as much grief as possible and he wouldn't be able to see them do it, being as they were on a frequency so high he'd never be able to tune in to them anymore. They would not kill him, but he would suffer.

But Joshua had already made his choice; for Neku, he'd gladly suffer humanity.

He was huffing by the time he got within sight of the old dog statue. He whipped his gaze around, half expecting an ambush by now of divine retribution, but none came for the moment. Whoever was looking out for him right now (could be Sanae, for all he knew, but he was also in a whole world of trouble himself) was doing a good job of keeping his way clear, so he could watch out for Neku. On most Saturdays, Neku would arrive first at the statue, listening to his music to pass the time. Joshua was hoping that he was early as usual.

It was amazingly hard to spot the ginger-haired teen in the crowd that had already accumulated at Hachiko. How had he done it before? Did his powers as a Composer really affect his view of the world that much? Good lord, he had gotten soft then. Joshua felt like sticking his face in his palm in aggravation; he made an awful human, he surmised. No wonder he killed himself.

Dark humor aside, his violet eyes raced from one end of the area to the other, wishing he could catch the glimpse of orange hair _somewhere_.

"Neku…Neku…"

There. Coming out of the Station, was his former Proxy, soft drink on hand. He was alone, as per usual for these weekly get togethers with his friends. Neku was always early or punctual and his timeliness proved to be quite the asset, especially today of all days. He looked like he didn't have a care in the world and the only worries he had were his upcoming entrance exams for his new school. The orange-haired boy was truly a sight for sore eyes and though he ached and his heart felt heavy in his chest, Joshua had never been so glad to see anyone in his life.

So it was that, with furious angels on his heels, Joshua rushed forward and hugged his precious Proxy for all he was worth.

Neku was stunned at the random person suddenly rushing at him. He had dropped his drink upon their bodies' impact and only from hearing a familiar pleased giggle did he relax – if only just a little. He hadn't quite forgiven Joshua for shooting him _twice_, after all.

Still, the teen was somewhat pleasantly surprised to see his old partner after a year of not hearing from him at all. Mainly surprised though.

"J-Josh? How? What – you're here?" Articulate as usual; Joshua never thought a stutter could sound so wonderful. He squeezed a bit harder, making Neku gasp. "Ah, Josh? Kinda suffocating me now…"

"Just shut-up and enjoy the moment dear," Joshua ordered in his playful tone. They had to enjoy it while it lasted, before all hell broke loose on them. A few last moments in paradise before he sunk into the hell that awaited him.

But that was alright. Joshua would die again, for Neku, if he could have this one moment of humanity that would stay with him forever. And who knew what the future really held for him?

Joshua squeezed again. "…Missed you partner."

Neku sighed, somewhat amused to find that he had grown somewhat taller than his old partner in the last year. "…Yeah," Neku replied, unable to even pretend to be irritated with this odd turn of events in his day. Me, too."

Those words were the best thing Joshua had ever heard.

**- TWEWY - - JOSHUA – NEKU - - TWEWY -**

**Author's Note:** A bit rushed, but alright, mostly. Kind of playing a reversal on the idea that Neku joins Joshua in the Afterlife. I thought it would be something if the opposite happened. What if Joshua had to become human? Of course, there are prices to such selfish wishes. XD Ah, well. Enjoy! I'll try to write some real fluff…soon…ish…dunno…I kind of fail at romance. XD


	5. Life 5

**Title: **100 Lifetimes

**Author: **Soshite

**Summary: **There are many different worlds out there, that branched out from one single place; each one special and unique. However, no matter where one would look, those two were always inextricably linked to one another. Joshua and Neku drabbles.

**Rated: **T

**Disclaimer: **I do not own any part of the World Ends With You. If I did, you can bet your butt that there would have been more of Week 2!

**Author's Note:** Someone on the ds-subarashiki lj community (or somewhere thereof) requested a very strange pairing for a fic a few years back. It took me a while, but I finally got inspiration for the crackiest pairing of all, which still involves Joshua and Neku at its core. Whoever suggested this pairing…this drabble is totally your fault. And the pairing? Neku's MP3 player and Joshua's phone.

**Life 5**

_Wires_

Neku had been working at Reaper Inc for almost two years now. And in the span of two years, the company had flourished under the inspirational leadership of Neku in Research and Development. They came up with the R-Pod, which revolutionized how people listen to music, the design going as so far to spur the birth of others based off of Neku's ingenious design. There was the R-Pod mini, the R-Pod Shuffle, the R-Pod Touch and, much more recently, the R-Pad, his finest creation yet.

But now, he was in a slump. Or, more accurately, he was stumped. You see, Neku Sakuraba was now on his way to creating the R-Phone, but was having a bit of trouble. The flip phone just would not synchronize with its brethren in the R-line no matter what he did with it. And what made matters worse was that one Yoshiya Kiryuu, the CEO of Reaper Inc, was sitting in during such a time where Neku just wanted to toss the small pieces of machinery away from himself and just crawl into a hole and die.

Obviously, he was much too stressed to work out this problem.

"Calm down, Neku dear, or that lovely crop of red just might turn ghostly white one day," President Kiryuu said with a deceptively pleasant smile. He sat to the side of Neku's worktable, his pristine white suit and purple cravat combo looking extremely out of place where everyone was in slacks and protective gear and surrounded by metal, metal and more metal. Neku was wearing goggles in case something sparked right into his eye. Happened once already and that was enough for him, style be damned.

And Neku, wearing those goggles, had to fight from glaring at the older man whose hair was already a very pale shade of silvery blond, despite the fact that he couldn't be older then twenty-five. He concentrated on his work.

In the one hand, he has his own personal R-Pod Shuffle; the original, he mused, which had it tampon-like shape that hadn't gone so well with the female masses. The controversy had been so bad that he had been forced into changing it into some more blocky and less resembling feminine hygiene products. However, Neku kept his as he was so fond of it.

Right now, he cursed the R-Pod's inability to sync up with the R-Phone prototype, swore at its questionable ancestry and was very obscene about where it could shove itself if it did not get along with the ridiculously orange phone that was meant to be the CEO's once he finished with it.

Neku's eyes narrowed when he heard the telltale giggle behind him and he was a breath too late when the overly personable executive was standing behind him, his back to the other male's front. This normally got a rise out of him, but Neku was too far gone down the road of techno-rage right now to care.

"Still won't sync up, will it?" Kiryuu inquired, his lips next to Neku's left ear. "I thought you said that the R-Phone would be compatible with all past R products, Neku."

"It's supposed to be and I can't figure out why it isn't working at all," Neku ground out, alternately annoyed by his machines and the CEO's inappropriate proximity. He could feel Kiryuu's crotch on his butt, which was not something he enjoyed and wished the man would stop sexually harassing him like this and just let him work in peace.

"Maybe it's the distance?"

"The distance shouldn't matter."

"But that could be the problem, right?"

And just like how Kiryuu was spooning Neku from behind, the company president took the orange R-Phone and place it right atop Neku's old R-Pod.

The results were immediate.

Whenever any of the R products synchronized, the gadgets often played a song and made a small light show to allow their users to know that they were in sync with one another. There were three levels of synchronization, with each level having a louder sound byte being played than the last. In the case of the new R-Phone, when it was being synced, it played music, lit up and started _vibrating_. The vibration is an option, of course, for the more discreet personage, but the way the machines were going at it…it almost seemed wrong to add in the vibration function.

The R-Phone vibrated in intervals, shaking itself against the lower end of Neku's R-Pod. The little MP3player would shudder underneath the cell as a response to each tremble. Unlike the new machine, it did not play music, but beeped progressively louder the closer it came to completed synchronization. The phone did play music, but the sound byte it played was glitchy, so one could only hear the first syllable of what should have been a pop song.

_Oh. Oh. Oh. Oh. Oh!_

Neku felt like he was watching some sort of horrible techno-porno of some kind, because the imagery he was presented with seemed so god damned dirty and it was only because of Kiryuu keeping his hands pinned to the work table that he could not wrenched away the R-Phone from his violated R-Pod until the synchronization was one hundred percent complete. At the last moment, the MP3 player and the cell phone let out a united beep/suggestive sound and they were done. Lifeless. Spent.

Disgusted, Neku shoved the president away, before flinging the raunchy orange phone at his face. Kiryuu deftly caught the expensive piece of technology before it smacked him one in the nose or broke to pieces on the floor. The orange top was now cradling his MP3 close to him, the way a father would embrace a child after experiencing a traumatizing event.

Neku glared. Kiryuu smiled pleasantly.

"Well, I suppose it was the distance between the two, after all."

Neku, somehow, felt incredibly dirty.

"Go to hell, Yoshiya."


End file.
